Wizards' Rookie Jeffries Tears ACL

Washington Wizards forward Jared Jeffries will miss the rest of his rookie season after tearing a ligament in his right knee.

Jeffries, the 11th overall pick out of Indiana, tore his anterior cruciate ligament during practice Sunday in Dallas.

"You never want an injury to end the season for you, but I've just got to get through it and get ready for next year," Jeffries said Thursday night.

Wizards coach Doug Collins said the 6-foot-11 Jeffries, who has been playing a reserve role at small forward, probably will undergo surgery within the next 10 days.

"It used to be a thing like this was devastating, but we expect him to make a full recovery," Collins said. "We're hoping to have him back for the summer league games in July."

Jeffries is averaging 4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 15 minutes. His playing time has declined since Michael Jordan became a starter and the team's leading scorer, Jerry Stackhouse, moved to small forward.

"Jared was working very, very hard and getting better every day," Collins said. "It's sad. We hoped to get him in the rotation before the end of the season."

Collins was more worried about Jeffries' mindset than his recovery time.

"The big thing we talked about today is keeping his spirits up," Collins said. "The good thing about it is that Jared is 21. He will be back, and he's going to be a big part of what we're building here."

Jeffries said the injury was easier to handle because it occurred early in his NBA career.

"It's not like this is my 12th year," he said. "I didn't plan on this, but it happened. I'll just make the best of it and come back strong."

Jeffries averaged 14.9 points last year with Indiana and helped the Hoosiers reach the NCAA championship game. Maryland beat Indiana in that game behind Juan Dixon, who also is experiencing an injury-riddled rookie season with the Wizards.

Dixon, out with a sprained left elbow, was dismayed to hear of Jeffries' injury.

"It's a sad situation, man," Dixon said. "Jared was definitely contributing to this team. To lose him sets us back a little bit. Hopefully we can get over it."